Photo by Catherine Ivill - AMA/Getty Images
Photo by Catherine Ivill - AMA/Getty Images
Myles Lewis-Skelly turns 20 this weekend, and what a tumultuous 12 months it has been for the Hale End graduate.
At the start of the year, his Arsenal future was uncertain. With Riccardo Calafiori and Piero Hincapie cementing themselves as the teamâs left-back options, opportunities had dried up.
A lack of minutes cost him a place in Englandâs World Cup squad, and transfer links wouldnât go away throughout the summer. It was a difficult period for the teenager who has been at the club since he was eight.
Mikel Arteta embraces Myles Lewis-Skelly after an Arsenal game
Photo by Catherine Ivill â AMA/Getty Images
But Mikel Arteta had absolutely no desire to let him go, not least after his incredible run of form at the tail end of the title-winning season. And this season, the Arsenal manager has shown how much he values Lewis-Skelly by starting him in each of the first four Premier League games â all of which they won.
It has been quite the turnaround for Lewis-Skelly, whoâs form has earned him an England call-up for the first time in over a year, so what exactly has changed?
Myles Lewis-Skelly went âback to basicsâ before Arsenal turnaround
As per The Athletic, Lewis-Skelly has been honest about what he had to do to force his way back into the picture. âIt was tough,â he said. âThe journey is never going to be simple or straightforward, especially at a club like Arsenal.
âEveryone wants to play and the chances arenât always guaranteed, but that was a stage where I needed to learn about myself, what I could bring to the team, and hone in on my basics.â
You only have to look at his game this season to notice what those âbasicsâ are. His 360-degree defensive awareness, dropping into positions to make blocks and clearances, battling for 50-50 balls, receiving on the back foot while turning and opening up different passing angles as a natural left-footer.
It may not be the sort of stuff thatâs as glamorous as Bruno Guimaraesâ thundercracker winning goal against Sunderland, but as we saw against Brighton, itâs essential.
Arteta recently admitted he understands Lewis-Skelly better now, and itâs showing in terms of the areas of the pitch he is finding himself in and the impact which he is having in games.